Philae was supposed to have anchored itself to Comet 67P with a pair of harpoons, but those harpoons didn’t fire on touchdown. Philae actually rebounded away from the comet (67P has a small but appreciable amount of gravity, although its escape velocity is only 0.5 meters per second). It was during the first of two "bounces" that Rosetta’s OSIRIS imager captured a series of frames showing the lander’s parabolic journey across the comet’s face. The exact location of Philae’s final resting place remains as yet undetermined.
European Space Agency (ESA) posted pictures.
A sad end for the lander that could? Or just a pause in the story?
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High-Res Rosetta Images Catch Little Philae Lander Bouncing Across Comet
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(Score: 2, Interesting) by anubi on Tuesday November 18 2014, @01:47AM
That Rosetta can see Philae, and between the two of them, maybe figure some way of getting Philae out of the crevice he seems to have fallen in so he can get some sunlight. I am hoping the rotation of the comet will at least provide some sun-time to the panels so Philae can get some energy to work with.
My best guess is even in good light on the comet, just seeing the size of the solar array, I am guessing they will get less than a watt of power to work with.
But then, they don't have that much gravity to fight either... at this stage of the game, I imagine inertia is the elephant in the room.
Those ESA guys are exactly what I imagine real engineers to be. Back in the olden days, people with that kind of insight were designing our hydroelectric dams. To this day we benefit from their labors.
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 18 2014, @01:56AM
> Those ESA guys are exactly what I imagine real engineers to be.
Incapable of telling feet from meters?
(Score: 1) by dpp on Tuesday November 18 2014, @08:39PM
Let's stop with the "he", Philae might be *female! ( trans/cis not verified )
Just picking on your post for use of "he" as an example of all of the anthropomorphizing we see everyone on this news - "the little lander that could", "tried his best", etc.
I get the anthropomorphizing when it comes to non-human animals, as ...well we're all animals, potential for thought/emotions/etc.
With man-made tools/machines, not so much.
Would the people who do this frequently agree with using the following type of statement about a machine:
"I'm in mourning, as today I had to put down the 'little toaster that could', she was a fine toaster who tried her best to make that last breakfast bagel, but she was just too old and tired...and will be missed."
*Feminine? Since ships are referred to as feminine, shouldn't a space travelling craft be female?
(Score: 1) by anubi on Wednesday November 19 2014, @01:42AM
Interesting point you make. Even the name: "Philae" ... uh... isn't that the English translation of "Love" in Greek?
And love is more associated with females than males.
I get your point. Thanks.
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
(Score: 3, Informative) by richtopia on Tuesday November 18 2014, @05:17AM
The video linked at the top of the lander's wikipedia page is a good summary up to before landing Philae. I wasn't keeping close tabs on the Rosetta mission and it pointed out to me how much harder this landing is than predicted thanks to the shape of the comet.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philae_%28spacecraft%29 [wikipedia.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 18 2014, @05:50AM
Is Little Philae a young female child one could marry if one was in the old testament type of crew?
Or is it greek debauchary?
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 18 2014, @08:28AM
Neither. Philae is a place in Upper Egypt. It's significant because there is an obelisk there with a bilingual inscription in both Greek and Egyptian hieroglyphs, which along with the Rosetta Stone (see what they did there?) provided the key to deciphering the hieroglyphs.